Surviving Dublin a city with more taxis than New York.
Dublin is a passengers paradise and a taxi drivers hell

Friday, May 18, 2007

Well my photos if anything are varied. First is a photo of Patrick Kavanagh writer and poet His novel Tarry Flynn is well known.http://www.tcd.ie/English/patrickkavanagh/life.html

Lines Written on a Seaton the Grand Canal, Dublin

'Erected to the memory of Mrs. Dermot O'Brien'

O commemorate me where there is water, Canal water, preferably, so stilly Greeny at the heart of summer. Brother Commemorate me thus beautifully Where by a lock niagarously roars The falls for those who sit in the tremendous silence Of mid-July. No one will speak in prose Who finds his way to these Parnassian islands. A swan goes by head low with many apologies, Fantastic light looks through the eyes of bridges - And look! a barge comes bringing from Athy And other far-flung towns mythologies. O commemorate me with no hero-courageous Tomb - just a canal-bank seat for the passer-by.

The other photo is of an Irish travelers grave in Kells Co.Meath. In life they were modest but in death they seem to elevate themselves like Kings. If you click on the photop and blow it up you can see his image which is etched inside the marble(or granate) insert.It really is a work of art.

Some things that happen in one place reflect how things happen in another place.I was listening to Seascapes today when a fisherman from Dingle Co.Kerry was being interviewed about changes in the industry. http://www.rte.ie/radio1/seascapes/ He had just returned from Spain where he had delivered his trawler to its new owners.The new Spanish owners can come into Irish waters and catch fish that under EU rules he could not land. The quota system as it is at present often had him sailing when it was unsafe to do so and last year we had tragic losses off the coast of Wexford, one trawler which sank was not allowed to seek refuge in a port which it was close to because of EU rules. I believe the bodies have still not been brought home.Tonight it is very stormy cyclonic gusting gales, a sure change in the weather pattern. I hope the fleet is safe in port.

You know when you think of your job and its problems,banking, insurance, teaching or taxi driving..Things are much worse for so many people.So when you grab your keys tonight and head out think of the people living in Zimbabwe a country facing total meltdown a government at war with its people.White farmers driven from their land, the farms then return to scrub.Once the bread basket of Africa now facing famine itself.Well Rule Britana. They don't give a s**tWell all of Africa is in decline,the whole place is really sinking into the abyss.

Count your blessings.

There was a really interesting segment on the Marrion Finucane show last Saturday which told of how the immigrants who come here are treated by the officials at the department of immigration when they come to renew their visas.You know if this was happening to the Irish abroad there would be all out war.

Shame on you all who work there. YOU DO NOT DO THIS IN THE NAME OF ANYTHING THAT IS JUST OR RIGHT.OFFICIALDOM GONE MAD.

And as for driving my taxi?

Well I am between and betwixt projects and am like hundreds of drivers.